How The Other Side Survives
by Alipiaoca
Summary: One-shots with no relations to another, many different ratings, mostly for language. Various characters, Sasuke, Itachi, Sakura, Naruto, Rookie 9.
1. Prince of the Damn

Hello again my children, miss me? Well peasants, these are one shots, say it with me, one-shots, short little imagined stories that make no sense nor connect.

(/'.')/\('.'\)

It was easy assuming the man who reaped a clan was stronger then a shinobi, who killed enemy ninja, let alone his own clan. No one questioned his motives as an Akatsuki member they just allowed him to run rampart doing as he pleased when he pleased, heeding to no one. Such an abnormality, an enigma to the point not even his brother could understand him, then again, who ever understood him to begin with? It didn't matter anyway; he refused to be understood by any "lesser being."

He joined this loathsome team (the gash on his forehead protector proof enough) as soon as he devastated the clan he called his own; I was seventeen when he told me about it.

He lies there, sleep so peacefully. He adorned his ANBU attire, head slumped in a bent open palm a light snore emitting from a slightly ajar mouth. He looked damn different with his faded red speckled black eyes closed, hair fanned out over and around him. He didn't even looked as annoyed as he normally would be. He was curled into a ball, so small and insignificant. One leg manage to slip from under him, just barely off the ground. The black hair that was loose from its tie, framed his all too pale face.

Hard to believe this kid, this peaceful sleeping soul, destroyed an entire clan, whether he had assistance or not, lead his brother to insanity, himself to insanity. This kid, no man, is so emotionally disrupt, his mental health, as well as physical, has been down right scary to witness.

He coughed then, loud and strangled. There was blood, a lot more then last week. Then another, one so violent, it shook the cement building to its foundation. This room was huge, a sort of meeting hall. A giant Uchiwa fan on the wall, the hall was cleared save for the giant throne at the base of the fan. A few more coughs and his faded charcoal eyes slit open.

A prodigy is what they called him, no one treated him the same way they'd treated normal kids. No he was a king. Mastering so many skills at a young age. He was such a busy, well-accomplished kid; he didn't even want to do normal kid things. He was just so, pitiful in life. He told me of how his blade ran through his over bearing father and how his father just smiled. His mother as well. He said his childhood was just that, a smile and, "good job son." His father never paid attention to his younger brother, which also lead to an ultimate rivalry. Killing his clan was the best thing that's ever happened to him. He was free in a way.

He told me his crazy, elaborate ploy of a life and his ultimate plan, he was a smart boy. Giving his brother such satisfaction is so selfless. He was definably the greatest genius of his time, and for no one to know of this would be a pity, such a waste. When I told him he should document this, he chuckled saying he rather not.

"Prince of Darkness, Milord, your brother has been spotted near our boarders. Would you like to continue the proceedings?" I mocked the kid. He sat up, slouched, sat up again, the stood, wiping blood from his mouth, then clearing his throat, he sat back down again.

"The nightmares just grow stronger, to the point they are now faceless figures whose screams sound the same as those of no origin."

"I see you're wallowing in self pity... again."

"Musings, not loathing. The fuck does perfection mean, Kisame? Don't you ever wory our perfection will fade and Peinn will ultimately destroy us? Get bored with playing his giant shogi game and blow up the world? His perfect world. What would become of us then?"

"Sure sounds like self-loathing to me." I chimed.

"Allow me to finish my _musing_, shark bait."

"Go for it, Ms. Lady Hair."

"Will you do one thing? Watch him, watch over that ridiculous outoto of mine, make sure that damned Madara doesn't corrupt his idiot mind. That is all for my 'pity party'."

"Come along, Itachi, we have things to do, people to see."

The sleepy Uchiha roused from his throne, the prince of the broken. The true Prince of the Damn.


	2. The Ballad Of Mona Lisa

Welcome again to my domain, a chaotic haze of thoughts and shit. This is dedicated to the Haruno girl, the one with the viridian eyes and cotton candy hair. From here on out, the chapters are P!ATD song titles. Get over it. Also, it relates to the anime/manga, sooooo read at risk bro.

(/'.')/\('.'\)

The Ballad Of Mona Lisa

F.S: There's nothing wrong with just a taste of what you paid for, but what if you don't want the toll? Sakura had a hard time believing she paid for this. Being a ninja seemed so good on paper, but no one told her the price would be so high.

"_...I paid to see ya' frown..."_

I focused on my breathing, at this point it was all I could do, nothing ever worked, no medication strong enough. The memories threatened to flow, break the dam I so cleverly constructed. The quiet of the room never helps, too much open space to let these haunting nightmare visions engulf me, which is what I don't want. The shinobi lifestyle was the equivalency of reanimated corpse. By the time one is twenty, you have seen many give their lives, and many more have theirs ripped from them. And most of the time, you're the one doing the ripping. I've had to hold dying hands, but I lived on to thirty, for them. So I sit and breathe, no thoughts, just breathing.

~('.')/\('.')~

I was ten when I first got the taste of death; Naruto, Sasuke and I were playing around the compound when Itachi and Shisui returned from a mission with their team. They were not their normal happy selves (as happy as Itachi could get); they trudge to the tearoom, not speaking. They were easily excitable, unhealthily pale, jittery, scared, completely out of character. Tea didn't calm them, and when asked, no they refused to say. Both boys where of fifteen. Eternity passed before their uncle arrived with devastating news; Aikido, their teammate, had passed.

('.')('.')

The Haruno clan was based in Suna, our compound located there. We were married into a Kohona based family as a treaty of such. Occasionally, I'd visit for festivals and funerals. It seemed id attend more funerals in the past year. I remember a Shinobi war had taken the clan of four hundred to one-fifty. It was horrible. My aunt told me about a cousin, her son, who she watch die in her arms. He had screamed for death, saying that a shinobi cannot be a ninja without limbs. They had been torn off. The tears in her eyes. I was only fourteen.

('.')('.')

I was seventeen when Peinn destroyed my world. Hinata, Kakashi, Tsunade, my parents, citizens all alike lay in puddles of blood, some bodies more mangle then the others; some unrecognizable. I was broken so utterly completely, I contemplated giving up and hitting a major artery. I watched the restoration of the village, Tsunade being forced to step down for the time being, after Naruto saved us, from the Hokage Mountains, skirting on the fourth's head. Maybe if I turned off my ninja senses and falling to my death. Loosing my balance is rather common, I was always so clumsy. Just maybe. A new Chakra signature appeared to my left, familiar and warm.

"It appears no one is capable to find a pink haired girl. Pink hair is _so_ common." A deep husky voice chuckled, annoyance clear.

"Tell them you were to late, I passed out and fell."

"Oh? Do you also want me to add coward to that?"

"Excuse me?" And with that I got the best advice.

"You witnessed something that many Ninja witness. You were lucky enough to be given a second chance. It's up to you to strive to protect it, pray told you do that dead? Do you think I enjoyed watching them fall? Get over it, you did not loose anyone, you do not get the right of suicide. Get up and walk away."

"Thank you, Itachi-san."

~('.')``('.')~

A simple mission can go horribly wrong in a matter of seconds. A normal group mission led to Kiba, Ino and I to separate from Itachi, Naruto and Kakashi. We encountered a man called The Reaper. At first we hand an upper hand, but then, we started loosing it. Ino was first, she had stormed the man when I said not to, a series of hand signs and Ino fell limp. We stared in shock of the man and Ino, then the gruesome murder began. After paralyzing the blond girl, Kiba went in for a kill, but he did not get paralyzed, instead, his limbs fell apart, like a stitching doll coming loose. Akumaru lashed out, receiving a treatment of skinning alive. The howling was ear splitting. He picked up Ino, I've never felt so useless. I slumped against a tree, both legs and right arm broken. Ino looked at me and smiled, "Have a kid for me... Actually, have six, preferably an Uchiha." Then suffered the way both Dog and Master, but instead of skinned, her skin was boiled off. The three males I traveled with showed then, making me feel worse then hell. "No! Let me die, I want to die, I don't want to live without her! Let me die, let me!" I cried to Itachi all night, not being able to stop. It hurt, watching your best friend die so horribly. I cried for weeks, not attending her funeral, I could not face her family, or friends. Itachi slept next to me all night.

(/.\)(/.\)

Itachi and I stayed that way, he stay at my place and I wrap myself within him. We lay up all night telling each other of past outtakes. It was the calm before the storm.

|('.'|)(|'.')|

Danzo became a temporary Hokage and "cleaned up Tsunade's mess." He did a horrendous job. The Uchiha clan for years, apparently, have been plotting to overthrow the Village hidden in the leafs, for reasons unknown. They made a "public example" of them; I did not expect a public execution. The look on Sasuke's face as they took Uchiha up one by one, Itachi stood next to me, straight faced and calmed, as his brother; screamed and thrashed about in Naruto and Kakashi's arms.

I was confused, why would Itachi just stand there? But I saw a flinch when the head of the clan and the lady of his house were stripped and cut through. Someone had lost grip of the youngest Uchiha, he launched himself at the temp. Hokage, elders and their court, the whole world faded. I knew Itachi was skilled, but the quick movement of this ninja frightened all who could see, which wasn't many. He rounds his younger brother, jamming his palm into his face.

The crowd was silent, gazing in horror. Itachi's words were engraved to minds of many, he spook smoothly and gently.

"Make another move, ototo, and I will personally tear your pathetic life from your pathetic body, relax and I will explain." Red tomes spun, leaving the younger of the two to fall limply.

Danzo screamed for the boy's head under the claim of safety. The deal was, as Itachi explained, the boy's were not to be harmed because Itachi worked as an agent of ANBU under Danzo and Tsunade. By turning in his family, he saved the lives of many, including his innocent brother. Sasuke was livid, anger seeping through him for weeks, screaming for Danzo's head. I do not blame him, but at the same time, the Uchiha clan threatened the safety of MY village, there was no other way.

(o.o)(0.0)

One by one, the village looked thinner, crowds turned to clusters, and friends to enemies. Sasuke had left the village, becoming the Sounds leader. He swore alliance to us, but no one could ever know. Itachi stayed, keeping my company and my demons at bay. In the same way, I did the same for him. The Rookie-nine, my generation, suffered causalities. Ino and Kiba being the first, Neji followed a year after, losing his life to the biggest threat of four years; Obito. It was traumatizing, it was one of the many casualties, but due to Lee's presence, no eye was dry. Due to Sasuke's alliance, he deployed troops and helped in anyway we could, when Neji past, such silence was never expected. I stared in shock.

(.0.)('o')

When the Ten-Tailed beast was sealed properly, we held funerals. Neji, Tsunade, Danzo, Lee and even Kakashi. It was one of the saddest days in Kohona history.

\('0'\)(/'0')/

Sasuke, as anticipated attacked us. Naruto had accepted Hokage duties the day the vengeful Uchiha declared war. Buildings after buildings were destroyed, lives were sacrificed, I, being one of the closest to the idiot boy, intercepted him on the Hokage Summit.

"Move." Were his first words to me in about a year.

"No Sasuke, you can't do this."

"You do not understand."

"They are not coming back just because you killed us."

He launched at me, aiming for my chest. "Bitch! You do not know what it's like to be betrayed by the ones you trust!"

"I WAS BETRAYED BY YOU, IDIOT." He did not heed to me wording, leaving me to defend my life and village.

A punch, "You're not alone."

A kick, "Shut up."

A dodge, "Itachi lives."

An enraged chakra infused punch, "He is not Uchiha, and one who would go against the clan does not deserve to be apart of it." This punch lands its mark, having my, now limp body, through trees. He stood over me, glaring. "Ignorance is not bliss, Sakura. You shall die as an example as such." I didn't see what happened next; just that Sasuke lay lifeless meters away.

"Over my dead, cold body, Ototo."

I've never seen so much hate toward siblings. It was pure and suffocating. The fight didn't last long, leaving Sasuke against a tree and Itachi next to me.

"If you are not too tired, make sure he does not die, but do not fix his ribs." No one sane could smile the way the eldest Uchiha did while trying to kill his last living relative. It was so pure. "If you don't mind my passing out now?" He swayed, blood leaking from his mouth, a cough racked his body. He knelt to the ground before falling. I checked his body to only find organs swimming in blood. I spend hours siphoning the liquid from them, making sure the only thing keeping me grounded alive.

(^.^)(^.^)

So I lie here, breathing on my sofa in my hospital office, waiting for any changes in the man who kept me alive, it was only right I did the same for him. Minutes turned to hours, hours to days and so on. Every day I'd show up to watch the pale Uchiha, occasionally visiting his brother as well. Yesterday Sasuke asked about his Onii-San, I slapped the ignorant kid. He wasn't shocked by it, nor by my tears.

"Be happy he lives and breathes, anything and everything he did was for you, he could have ended your stupid life!" I stormed out, refusing to be his doctor anymore.

If anyone else was Hokage, they'd kill Sasuke as a war criminal, but Naruto showed mercy and understanding, allowing him a court case. He didn't deserve one, but they found him not guilty by way of he is within rights of wanting to kill those who called for mass murder. In turn, the ones behind the sentence, The Elders, were jailed. Two others took their place, two much more sensible souls.

A small tap on the door reminded me of my surroundings. "Dr., the Uchiha boy is awake."

I stood, thanking the nurse and making my way through the corridors till I got to room thirteen. I knocked twice then entered.

"Funny, how though I was accepting of my death, you go and save me."

"Itachi Uchiha, I have witnessed many things as a Shinobi of the Leaf, and I have to say, you, no matter how bad life _is_, you do not get the right of death by the hands of an avenger."

"Hm, I do not remember telling you exactly that." He held my gaze with a graceful smile, forcing my hand to return one to him.

"What damage did Pip-squeak do?" It took a second to realize he was asking about Sasuke.

"Much, the east part of the village and fifty lives. No ninja were killed." I reported, "Naruto held a court, he was not guilty, instead Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu were found guilty of war crimes."

"As I thought."

He looked at me with a glare, which scared me, he then said, "You have not been caring for yourself, go home and sleep." I laughed the first in years then stared at him. Such a man who could lie in a hospital bed in a coma for three months and yell at me for being malnourished could, and would, be Uchiha Itachi.

Ino would, in the end, gets her wish.

~(0.0)~~(o.o)~

Am I the only one who felt the feels all over on Chapter 616? Or are ya'll Neji haters? Because next to Tachi, Neji is the absolute favorite. I Actually forgot how to person for days.

Well R&R I have school in th morning so it'd be awesome to get reviews during school :) go forth, have good days :).


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